1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of telephony. More specifically, the present invention relates to the quick dial and re-dial features of telephones.
2. Background Information
Advances in integrated circuit, microprocessor, networking, and telecommunication technologies have led to wide spread adoption of computers, fax machines, as well as wireless mobile client devices, in particular, wireless mobile telephones. Modern powerful and yet inexpensive computers coupled with high speed communication accesses allow even the average users to access the World Wide Web, exchange emails with one another, participate in instant messaging or on-line chats, and engage in e-commerce. Wireless mobile phones offer the advantage of enabling their users to be communicatively reachable by their business associates, friends and family members, wherever the users may be, as long as they are within the reach of the service networks. With the cost of ownership continues to decline, even non-professionals including teenagers are increasingly dependent on their wireless mobile phones to meet their communication needs.
As a result of this explosive adoption of telephony enabled computing/communication devices, there has been a significant increase in the need for telephone numbers, leading to the introduction or division and formation of new calling areas (with each of the new calling areas having its own new “area code”). In turn, more and more metropolitan areas require ten digits dialing, even for “local” calls.
In the meantime, as advances in technology and competition continue to drive down the cost of ownership, including the offering of one rate calling plan, for both local and long distance calls (for at least the 48 contiguous states), and support of multiple protocols (e.g. for both U.S. and European calling), more and more users, especially business users who travel frequently to “away: locations, use their wireless mobile phones as their primary communication devices, taking and placing calls from their “home” as well as “away” locations.
To facilitate ease of dialing, most wireless mobile phones as well as many wired or cordless conventional telephone sets offer the feature of quick dialing using any one of a number of saved phone numbers, typically the most frequently called numbers, such as a user's home number, office number and so forth. However, in many instances, users still wind up dialing other infrequently called numbers. With increased mobility (dialing from “away” locations), and dialing areas requiring 10-digit local dialing, often users would fail to dial with the proper prefixes. Typically, the user is provided with an audio error message reminding the user to dial with certain requisite dialing prefix. This feedback or reminder often aggravates the user, as the system appears to know what's wrong with the number dialed, but does not automatically repair the incorrect dialing format.
Thus, an improved approach that supports the increased mobility, and changing dialing behavior of telephone users, providing these users with enhanced usability and calling experience, is desired.